Yogi Adityanath chosen Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister; Keshav Prasad Maurya, Dinesh Sharma to be Deputy CMs Saturday March 18,2017

Priest-turned politician Yogi Adityanath, the controversial mascot of hardline Hindutva, was on Saturday March 18,2017 named as next Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, in a move by the BJP that took many by surprise.

Ending the suspense exactly a week after BJP won a three-fourths majority in the key Hindi heartland state and stormed back to power after 15 years, the 44-year-old five-term MP from Gorakhpur was unanimously elected the BJP legislature party leader at a meeting of the newly elected MLAs

Senior BJP leader and Union minister Kalraj Mishra announces Yogi Adityanath as UP’s new chief minister. 

Yogi Adityanath, the Next UP CM - All You Need To Know 

— Adityanath was born in a village in present-day Uttarakhand in 1972 as Ajay Singh to a Rajput family. He later took the name ‘Adityanath’.

— He has a degree in Science from Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University.

— He runs his own “youth wing” called the Hindu Yuva Vahini, which has been accused of inflaming communal passions. They were accused in the 2005 Mau riots.

— Adityanath is a five-time MP from the Gorakhpur Lok Sabha constituency.

— He was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1998 at the age of 26, becoming the youngest member of the 12th Lok Sabha.

— His spiritual Guru Mahant Avaidyanath passed away in 2014, passing on the reigns of the Gorakhnath Mutt to Adityanath.

— The MP has been in the news for his polarizing statements. He has been accused of making hate speeches. In 2015, he even declared that those who opposed ‘Surya Namaskar’ should be prepared to leave India.

— In 2005, he led a “purification drive” to “re-convert” Christians to Hinduism.

— In 2007, he staged a “non-violent dharna” during a Moharram procession in Gorakhpur. However, it was alleged that inflammatory speeches were made during the demonstrations and some of his followers allegedly set fire to a nearby mazar. Adityanath later broke a curfew and was jailed. Following his imprisonment, riots spread across Gorakhpur district.

— The firebrand MP’s relationship with the party has been strained. In 2006, he staged a Virat Hindustan rally at the same time as the BJP National Executive meeting. He has been in conflict with the BJP leadership over ticket distribution several times. In 2010, he even defied the party whip to vote against the women’s reservation bill